Chapter 235: The Battle Begins

The duel between Germany and Britain in this world war is the most important duel between the navy. The German Navy wants to challenge the supremacy of the British Navy. William II wanted to lead the German Empire to replace the British Empire and become the hegemony of the world.

Therefore, in the war between the two countries, the outcome of the navy is the most important. As for the others, they all serve this purpose. Including this time, the German navy knew that the British navy had set a trap, but it still broke in without hesitation, hoping to take advantage of this opportunity to severely damage the British navy, so as to fight for a better future for the German navy in the final decisive battle. big advantage.

With both sides intentionally doing this, the navies of the two countries once again launched a fierce confrontation.

The "King George V class" battleship has a full load displacement of more than 25,000 tons, is equipped with five double-mounted 45-caliber 343mm main guns, and has a maximum speed of 21 knots. This is a standard battleship of the line of battle, that is, a battleship used to output firepower on the battle line during the decisive battle of the fleet. The speed is not very fast, but the firepower is very strong, and the armor defense is not weak.

Of course, the British Navy's shipbuilding thinking has made their warships never comparable to the German Navy in terms of defense. Even facing the battlecruisers of the German Navy, the battleships of the British Navy can't take advantage of any defense.

The waterline armor of the "King George V class" battleship is 305 mm thick, the deck armor is 25 mm to 102 mm, the turret armor is 280 mm, the gun seat armor is 254 mm, and the conning tower armor is 280 mm. This kind of defense is indeed not strong. This is why the warships of the British Navy can carry large-caliber naval guns with a small displacement.

"Attack, let the damn Germans see how powerful the Royal Navy is! Let them know that the sea power belongs to the British Empire, and no one can take away the sea power of the Royal Navy." Rear Admiral Carroll roared loudly .

The four "King George V-class" battleships of the Royal Navy lined up in a battle line and rushed towards the German Navy.

"Ready to fight!" On the other side, the German Navy is also ready for battle. Three "Moltke-class" battlecruisers and three "Blücher-class" battlecruisers lined up in a battle line.

"Began to assign combat tasks, the 'Moltke' dealt with the British 'King George V', the 'Goben' dealt with the British 'Centurion', the 'Sedlitz' and the 'Brave'. Lücher, against the British 'Audacity', 'Von der Tann' and 'Leopold' against the British 'Ajax'. In the shortest possible time , sink the British battleship, and win the naval battle!" Lieutenant General Spee ordered.

All ships received orders and began to make adjustments. Because the German Navy has six battlecruisers, which is superior in number, the few battlecruisers located in the rear of the battle line can fight two against one.

Although, the "Blücher-class" battlecruiser is equipped with a 305mm main gun. However, the 305mm main gun with 50 times the caliber is no worse than the 343mm main gun with 45 times the caliber of the British Navy in terms of armor-piercing ability. Even, because of the shell problem, it was able to suppress the British 343mm main gun. Therefore, even if the "Blücher-class" battlecruiser and the "King George V"-class battleship of the British Navy confront each other, they will not lose the wind. What's more, two ships are still fighting one. In this battle, the German Navy's breaking fleet can be said to have a huge advantage.

Of course, the only uncertain factor is when the reinforcements from the British Navy will arrive on the battlefield. If they arrived at the battlefield before the German Navy's breaking fleet severely damaged the four "King George V" battleships, the situation would not be so favorable to the German Navy. Therefore, before launching the attack, the German Navy scouted for four weeks with seaplanes to ensure that there were no other warships of the British Navy within an hour's voyage. As for the farther places, there is no further investigation. An hour may already determine the outcome of this naval battle.

Before launching the attack, Lieutenant General Spee did not ask to inform General Reinhard Scheer. The four 'Derfflinger-class' battlecruisers are still cruising two hours north of the broken fleet, waiting for an opportunity.

The battle lines of the two sides are constantly approaching. Although, the battlecruisers of the German Navy are faster and easier to seize favorable shooting positions. But Major General Carroll is not a young commander in a battle situation, but an experienced commander. He knows that if you fight for speed, the battleship 'King George V' is absolutely incomparable to the battlecruiser of the opponent. Therefore, he could only turn ahead of time, making the German Navy's plan to break through the fleet fall through.

After some probing, Lieutenant General Spei had no choice but to give up seizing a favorable position. He knew that if it kept going like this, it would be difficult to find the right moment. And time is passing by little by little. He can be sure that the reinforcements of the British Navy must have arrived quickly. The longer the time drags on, the more unfavorable it will be to the German Navy.

"Order the fleet to keep its course, and all ships are ready to fire. The seaplane should pay attention to providing calibration for the fleet." Lieutenant General Spee ordered.

The High Seas Fleet of the German Navy no longer attempted to seize a favorable position, and at the same time, the speed of the fleet began to slow down. If the speed is too fast, the battleship will be more bumpy, which will affect the hit rate of the battleship.

"Huh! The Germans are smart." Seeing the actions of the German navy, a smile appeared on Rear Admiral Carroll's face, as if he had won the battle just now.

"Order the ships and prepare for battle. Use your naval guns to sink the German warships and let them know that the Royal Navy is powerful." Major General Carroll's fighting spirit was high.

"Long live the Royal Navy! Sink the German battleship." The officers and soldiers of the Royal Navy shouted loudly.

The battle lines of the two sides were getting closer and closer, and soon they were within 15,000 meters.

"Fire!"

Lieutenant General Spee was the first to give the order to fire. Although, this distance is a bit far. Especially for 305mm naval guns, the distance is too far and the shells are too light. When shooting distant targets, the hit rate will drop significantly.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The battlecruiser "Moltke" opened fire first, and three 50-caliber 343mm main guns began test firing.

The other five battlecruisers followed suit and began firing.